1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cutting tool and more particularly to a hand held electrically powered cutting shear adapted to cut a strip from a sheet material.
2. Description of the Related Art
Skilled craftsman use a variety of cutting shears to cut patterns for stenciling. In the stained glass art, for example, a pattern must be cut which is representative of the stained glass artwork to be produced. The pattern must provide for a space to receive soldering which ultimately holds together the various pieces of glass. Therefore, it is desirable to have a cutting shear which can be used to trace a pattern and which cuts two substantially parallel spaced slits to separate a narrow strip from the pattern of a width required for soldering the glass pieces together.
Manual cutting shears operative to cut such a strip are known in the art as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,779,343. Manual shears have several disadvantages in that they are tedious to use over long periods of time and require more time for cutting a pattern. Moreover, manual shears are more costly to manufacture since a relatively lengthy blade must be made. Finally, they are costly to maintain, since they require sharpening.